In the process of shipping an item from one location to another, a protective packaging material is typically placed in the shipping case, or box, to fill any voids and/or to cushion the item during the shipping process. Plastic foam peanuts and plastic bubble pack are two types of conventionally used packaging materials and these plastic materials, while performing acceptably in many packaging applications, are not without disadvantages. For example, one drawback of plastic bubble film is that it usually includes a polyvinylidene chloride coating which prevents the plastic film from being safely incinerated thereby creating disposal difficulties for some industries. Additionally, both the plastic foam peanuts and the plastic bubble pack have a tendency to generate a charge of static electricity which attracts dust from the surrounding packaging site. Furthermore, these plastic materials sometimes themselves produce a significant amount of packaging "lint." Such dust and lint particles are generally undesirable and may even be destructive to sensitive merchandise such as electronic or medical equipment.
However, perhaps the most serious drawback of plastic bubble wrap and/or plastic foam peanuts is their effect on our environment. Quite simply, these plastic packaging materials are not biodegradable and thus they cannot avoid further multiplying our planet's already critical waste disposal problems. The non-biodegradability of these packaging materials has become increasingly important in light of many industries adopting more progressive policies in terms of environmental responsibility.
These and other disadvantages of conventional plastic packaging materials have made paper protective packaging material a very popular alternative. Paper is biodegradable, recyclable and renewable thereby making it an environmentally responsible choice for conscientious industries. Additionally, paper may be safely incinerated by the recipients of the products. Furthermore, paper protective packaging material is perfect for particle-sensitive merchandise, as its clean dust-free surface is resistant to static cling.
While paper in a sheet-like form could possibly be used as a protective packaging material, it is usually preferable to convert sheet-like stock material into a relatively low density pad-like cushioning product. This conversion may be accomplished by a cushioning conversion machine, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,509,798; 3,603,216; 3,655,500; 3,779,039; 4,026,198; 4,109,040; 4,717,613; and 4,750,896, and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 07/592,572 and 07/712,203. The entire disclosures of these patents and applications, which are owned by the assignee of the present application, are hereby incorporated by reference.
In a typical cushioning conversion machine, the stock material constituting the starting material for the conversion process will usually be composed of a one or more plies of a sheet-like material rolled onto a hollow cylindrical tube. Consequently, the stock supply assembly of the cushioning conversion machine is adapted to accommodate this rolled stock material. For example, the stock supply assembly often includes two laterally spaced brackets which are each generally shaped like a sideways "U" and have two legs extending perpendicularly outward from a flat connecting base wall. One set of corresponding legs have open slots in their distal ends to cradle a supply rod. During operation of the machine, the supply rod extends relatively loosely through the hollow tube of the rolled stock material. In this manner, the tube will freely rotate thereby dispensing the stock material as the stock material is pulled through the machine.
The present invention provides an alternative to the rolled stock material conventionally used in cushioning conversion machines. Particularly, the present invention provides fan-folded stock material for use in a cushioning conversion machine. With this stock material, the need for a hollow cylindrical tube (which usually forms the core of rolled stock material) is eliminated. The fan-folded stock material is compatible with existing cushioning conversion machines which are designed for use with rolled stock material, such as those machines disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,509,798; 3,603,216; 3,655,500; 3,779,039; 4,026,198; 4,109,040; 4,717,613; and 4,750,896; co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 07/592,572 and 07/712,203; and/or other cushioning conversion machines currently being developed and patented by the assignee of the present invention. Additionally, the fan-folded stock material may be stored and/or transported in a box. Still further, increased operating speeds are possible, and edge-tension problems are minimized, when the fan-folded stock material is used instead of rolled stock material.
More particularly, the present invention provides a biodegradable and recyclable stock material for use with a cushioning conversion machine which comprises a plurality of superimposed plies of a sheet-like material. The superimposed plies are fan-folded into a rectangonal stack and include a series of alternating folds which each create superimposed creases through the plies. The series of folds together form a sequence of rectangular pages which are piled accordion-style one on top of the other to form the rectangonal stack. The plies preferably are each made of paper and, more preferably, are each made of thirty-pound Kraft paper. However, one or more of the plies may be made of another type of sheet-like material and/or paper, such as printed paper, bleached paper, fifty-pound Kraft paper, or combinations thereof.
In many of the above-noted conversion machines, the compatible fan-folded stock material would comprise three plies. However, other multi-ply arrangements, such as two-ply four-ply, and eight-ply arrangements, are possible with, and contemplated by, the present invention. Additionally, in many of the above-noted conversion machines the compatible stock material would be fan-folded in such a manner that each of the rectangular pages has a width of approximately thirty inches and the distance between the folds is approximately twelve inches. (Thus, the width of the stack would be approximately thirty inches and the length of the stack would be approximately twelve inches.) Nonetheless, the dimensions of the rectangular pages (and thus the rectangular stack) will vary depending upon the characteristics of the cushioning conversion machine being used and/or the desired qualities of the cushioning product being created. In any event, the stock material is preferably transported, stored, and dispensed from a package such as a corrugated cardboard box.
The present invention also provides a method of converting a sheet-like stock material into a cushioning product. The method includes the steps of providing a stock material; fan-folding the stock material into a rectangonal stack; providing a conversion assembly for converting the stock material into the cushioning product; supplying the sheet-like stock material from the rectangonal stack to the conversion assembly; and converting the sheet-like stock material into the cushioning product. The conversion of the sheet-like stock material preferably includes inwardly rolling the lateral sides of the sheet-like material to form a continuous strip having two lateral pillow-like portions and a central band therebetween; coining the central band of the continuous strip to form a coined strip; and cutting the coined strip into sections of a desired length to create the cushioning product. Accordingly, the fan-folded stock material is permanently deformed into a nonplanar configuration to provide the cushioning product with a density less than the density of the stock material from which it is formed.
Therefore, by way of further summary, the invention provides a method of converting fan-folded stock material into a cushioning product, said method comprising the steps of providing a stack of fan-folded stock material; providing a conversion assembly for converting the fan-folded stock material into the cushioning product; supplying the fan-folded stock material from the stack to the conversion assembly; and converting the sheet-like stock material into the cushioning product, said step of converting the fan-folded stock material including the step of permanently deforming the fan-folded stock material into a nonplanar configuration to provide the cushioning product with a density less than the density of the stock material from which it is formed.
These and other features of the invention are fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following descriptive annexed drawings set forth in detail one illustrative embodiment. However this embodiment is indicative of but one of the various ways in which the principles of the invention may be employed.